Being in a Relationship With an Addict

There are 9.2 million people who use heroin. This drug is very dangerous and causes more problems than just health issues. Most addicts have family members who are more concerned about their health than the addict themselves. While they’re not the one battling the addiction themselves, they are the ones questioning what went wrong? They also wonder what they need to do in order to fix them.

What Loved One’s Could go Through

The problem with being close to an addict is all the self-esteem issues the family or even husbands and wives face as they watch their loved one’s battle something like this. Beyond seeing your child struggle with an addiction, imagine it’s your husband. Don’t give up on him, though. There is help for your husband.

Noticing an addiction can be the hardest part. Your husband could start off with random and severe aggression or periods of time when you may not know where he was. He may not even remember himself.

Addiction effects more than just our physical bodies. Addiction effects our personalities. You may have a husband who is normally, truly, wonderful, but while he’s on drugs he may not act anything like himself. If you notice your husband changing in ways that you’ve never seen before, then check out these signs of a building addiction.

Signs of Drug Addiction

There are so many different drugs out there now. The drugs we hear of on the streets also have multiple names. It may be hard for those who have no education on drugs to tell what is what. Being uneducated may be hard for someone to admit, but it’s a reality. It can be hard to remember all of the facts with every drug. Some drugs stay in your system for varying amounts of time. Heroin stays in your system for anywhere from a few hours up to a few days.

There are quite a few signs of drug addiction, but here are some physical symptoms: blood shot or glazed eyes, dilated pupils, weight loss or gain, sudden and onset infections.

While physical symptoms are easy to identify, the emotional and personality changes may be harder to spot. There are quite a few personality changes that might happen, such as depression, severe mood swings, dropping friends and even involvement in criminal activities.

How to Help Once an Addiction is Identified

A lot of addicts can take a while before they’re willing to admit that they need help. You may be familiar with things like the stages of grief. Addiction can be a lot like that because the addict has to recognize that there’s a problem. Some addicts recognize this without much of a push, while others need full-on intervention.

Usually, an intervention leads to a stay at a drug rehabilitation facility. While some facilities recommend something as small as a 30-day stay, it’s recommended that an addict stays in the program for at least 5 or 6 months. This may seem like a long time, but compare that to a lifetime of having your partner not really there at all.

Detox centers offer a variety of treatments options in order to meet the needs of each patient. The counselors know how to handle a lot of different addictions. While heroin is a really big part of the number of addicts, there are many more drugs that contribute to the overall number.

What Do I Do Now?

All of this is very scary, but you have to focus on what you can do to help. You have to focus on what you can do to help your husband recover so you can get your family back. The key to a drug addict’s recovery is the admittance that they have a problem and a real desire to get better. While you don’t have any control over what someone else chooses, you can do what’s best for the rest of your family. Even if that means stepping back from the addict until they come to their senses and realize that it’s their addiction that’s the problem. A lot of addicts are known for not being able to accept that anything that’s gone wrong is their responsibility. Therapists say that they get to a point where they can’t handle that realization. Just remember to keep faith and do what you can to help.